Monday, February 17, 2025, 9:44PM |  25°
MENU
Advertisement
1
MORE

A national suicide crisis: It demands attention akin to the opioid epidemic 

Getty Images/iStockphoto

A national suicide crisis: It demands attention akin to the opioid epidemic 

The suicide rate in the United States, which has been rising steadily in recent years, has reached the point of a national public health crisis.

The statistics released in early June by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are alarming. They show that suicide rates have ticked upward from 1999 to 2016. There were 35,000 in 1999 and nearly 45,000 suicides in the United States in 2016. That was more than twice as many homicides in the country that year.

The rising number of Americans killing themselves has made suicide the No. 2 cause of death for people 15-34.

Advertisement

Suicide victims are overwhelmingly male (77 percent) and white (84 percent), but the latest stats show that suicide rates are on the rise for every race and ethnic group and both genders.

The suicide crisis is even more pronounced with America’s military veterans. 

A Department of Veterans Affairs study released around the same time as the CDC’s general suicide data shows that veterans are more than twice as likely as civilians to die by suicide.

Montana was the state with the highest suicide rate. It also has the highest percentage of veterans in its population.

Advertisement

What may surprise many is that more than half the suicide victims in the United States did not have a diagnosed mental illness, though investigations after their deaths point to signs of undiagnosed mental health issues. And some observers believe that this statistic can tell us more than other suicide-related data.

One of the largest obstacles to addressing the suicide risk for many people is addressing the stigma attached to seeking help for suicidal thoughts or mental illness in general.

That makes the suicide crisis much like another public health crisis — the opioid addiction epidemic. The stigma attached to addiction prevents many drug users and their families from seeking or finding the help they need.

While experts are alarmed by the rising suicide rate, they are at a loss to explain it. Many point to several factors that are likely to blame for rising suicide rates — a lack of access to mental health services, the relatively easy access to guns (which are used in about half of all suicides), and even a general sense of disconnection and social isolation in modern society. 

The concentration among vets, especially, one suspects, combat vets, is especially poignant and troubling. It becomes another serious VA issue that must be addressed.

Americans need to understand the climbing suicide rate as the crisis it is and devote the attention and resources necessary to reduce the rising loss of life. 

That means a massive public education program, similar to what the federal government and many foundations and voluntary organizations, like the American Cancer Society, engaged in years ago for cigarettes. 

We also clearly need better and more urgent clinical intervention, especially in small towns, rural areas, and states like Montana. 

That, in turn, will require better designed programs and smarter allocation of resources on the local, state, and federal levels.

First Published: July 10, 2018, 4:00 a.m.

RELATED
SHOW COMMENTS (0)  
Join the Conversation
Commenting policy | How to Report Abuse
If you would like your comment to be considered for a published letter to the editor, please send it to letters@post-gazette.com. Letters must be under 250 words and may be edited for length and clarity.
Partners
Advertisement
Head coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith watch a receivers and defensive backs drill at Steelers Minicamp at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex Thursday, June 13, 2024.
1
sports
Gerry Dulac: Next season’s major decisions loom this week for Mike Tomlin, Steelers staff
This image taken from video shows emergency crews responding at Toronto Pearson Airport after a plane crash on Monday.
2
news
At least 8 reported injured after Delta jet flips during landing at Toronto airport
The impacted workers include personnel hired for FAA radar, landing and navigational aid maintenance, one air traffic controller told the Associated Press.
3
news
President Trump begins firings of FAA air traffic control staff just weeks after fatal D.C. plane crash
The Federal Bureau of Investigation seal outside the headquarters in Washington, D.C.
4
opinion
Vanni Cappelli: The FBI purge could lead to another 9/11
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (1) catches a pass from quarterback Jake Browning for a first down with Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (24) defending during the second half of an NFL football game in Cincinnati, Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023.
5
sports
Brian Batko's Steelers chat transcript: 02.17.25
 (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Getty Images/iStockphoto
Advertisement
LATEST opinion
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story